Construction workers perform their duties on sites where heavy equipment and scaffolding or temporary structures are erected. Worksites like these pose certain risks due to hazardous conditions.
Organizations like OSHA seek to curtail these risks, but accidents are still likely. You can claim compensation for your injuries if you sustained an injury due to falling equipment, safety procedures, or site equipment failures. If you are a business owner, consider investing in training courses from 360training to ensure you reduce the risk of injury for your workers.
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Worker’s Compensation
When injured in a construction accident, you can claim medical expenses relating to the incident and a portion of your lost earnings and rehabilitation. You don’t need to provide proof that your Employer was negligent, as Worker’s compensation is no-fault insurance. The only requirement is that your illness or injury was incurred while performing your work duties.
You cannot claim compensation for non-economic expenses such as pain and suffering. You will not be allowed to use the Company regardless of the cause of the accident, whether due to negligence or not.
Dallas attorneys specializing in Construction accident cases can assist you with recovering those losses.
There Are Two Possibilities:
When your Employer deliberately placed you in harm’s way, knowing of the likelihood that you might get hurt in the process (your lawyer may request that the court exempt you from an exclusionary rule and allow you to sue them).
Or
The attorney’s investigation aims to identify third parties contributing to your injury due to negligence (the more likely option).
Third-party Claims
If another individual or Company contributed to conditions at the worksite that caused you to get hurt, you may have a chance at holding them liable for your damages.
Examples of third parties:
- A Sub-contractor
- A vendor
- An engineer
- The property owner
- An architect
- The manufacturer of defective equipment or tools used during your accident, resulting in you getting hurt.
Fatal Four Types Of Accidents Relating To OSHA Violations:
Specific safety standards set by The Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) are designed to prevent serious workplace injuries and fatalities. OSHA has determined that the most common and severe construction site accidents that cause the highest number of injuries fall into the “fatal four” category.
These include:
1. Falls
This is the number one cause of construction site accident injuries due to unstable ladders, roofs, scaffolding, and unmarked drop-offs and excavations.
2. Falling objects
Being struck by a falling object.
3. Caught in or between
Where a worker is crushed or trapped between objects, usually from being caught in the moving parts of heavy machinery or being stuck in a cave-in.
4. Electrocutions
Electrocutions result from exposed wiring, power lines, extension cords, or poorly maintained or defective tools and equipment.
OSHA has strict safety standards and performs inspections at construction sites to enforce them. However, their overall effectiveness could be improved due to the vast number of worksites and only a couple thousand inspectors. Need a construction expert witness for legal cases? Contact Harper-Brawner to see how they can help.
